Baking // Christmas Sticky Toffee Puddings with GBBO's Edd Kimber

December 4, 2015

Saturday 21st November was a magical day. Not only had there been whispers of the first sprinklings of snowbut I also spent the morning at a Christmas Baking Masterclass with Whitworths and Edd Kimber, winner of the first series of Great British Bake Off, celebrity baker and all round lovely guy! To top it all off we were baking a tastier alternative to Christmas pudding(does anyone actually like Christmas pud?!) – Christmas Sticky Toffee Pudding YUM!

The masterclass was held at Venturi’s Table Cooking School which is where they film and shoot loads of cookery shows and cookery books. Very cool! After cups of tea and hellos we gathered around the main work station and Edd talked us through and demonstrated how to make his Sticky Toffee Puds. It was really great to watch and learn from an expert and hear all sorts of hints and tips. Edd also made a praline and caramel (two things I’ve always wanted to try but have always been a bit too much of a wuss!) so I will be definitely be giving these ago in the future.

Edd told us he had put together his Christmas Sticky Toffee Pudding recipe to be as quick and simple to make as possible, and I have to say – it really was! In no time at all Edd had whacked his batch of puddings in the oven and it was our turn to get baking. The sponge recipe was really simple to create, especially with the help of the Whitworthspre packaged dried fruit and nuts which come pre-chopped or whole, so you can choose how lazy you want to be! I hate chopping fruit so it was fab to be able to have the dates already done and I could avoid sticky and stiff hands!

I was pretty impressed with my puds when they came out the oven – I’d managed not to over fill my dariole cases too high and they all looked nice and even (hurrah!) We had started the class a little bit late so I didn’t have time to make the butterscotch and rum sauce (mmmmm!) that goes on top of the puddings but Edd had whipped up a batch so we could see the principals involved and how the finish product should look all plated up – I.e stunning! Edd spooned over the thick sticky sauce and then crumbled on pieces of his homemade praline which was absolutely SCRUMPTIOUS! After copious amounts of phototaking (ah bloggers!) it was time to get stuck in. Son of a nutcracker they were good! The pudding was really light and the fiery ginger came through really nicely, as did the rich taste of dates. The butterscotch sauce was beautifully sweet but not too saccharine thanks to the added rum and sea salt, which lifted the whole dish, and the praline on top added a wonderful bite of texture. I certainly wouldn’t turn this pud down on Christmas Day, no matter how many pigs in blankets I’d eaten!

I had such a fantastic day at the Masterclass – thanks so much for having me guys! I’d definitely reccommend giving Edd’s Christmas Sticky Toffee Puddingsa go – they’re a much lighter and more delicious alternative to traditional Christmas pud. They’re also very simple and fairly quick to make and could even be made in advance, frozen and heated up on the Big Day. Perfect!

The recipe for Edd’s Christmas Sticky Toffee Pudding can be found HERE.